Chef Gordon Ramsay, the foul-mouthed, hot-headed British star of cooking reality shows such as "Hell's Kitchen" and "MasterChef," offered a rare glimpse into his personal life in a revealing interview with Men's Journal, in which he discussed his abusive childhood, his wife and kids and a topic that gets him particularly fired up -- his father-in-law.

The article was printed in the magazine's April 2013 issue and just ahead of the season 11 premiere of "Hell's Kitchen," which airs on FOX on March 12 at 8 p.m. ET

Check out five highlights from his Men's Journal interview.

1. "He'd hit Gordon with his belt."

Ramsay's father, Gordon Sr., walked out on his family in 1991 and died of alcoholism at age 58 in 1998, according to Men's Journal. Ramsay's mother, Helen, told the magazine that Gordon Sr. was at times violent towards her and their four children, adding: "He'd hit Gordon with his belt or his hands or anything he could get hold of."

Ramsay said that his father did not approve of his passion for cooking and had used a gay slur while talking to him about it.

When asked if his his dad ever did anything nice for him, Ramsay told Men's Journal: "He taught me how to swim ... and I think that's important." The magazine said his father's method involved holding his head underwater "for minutes on end."

Ramsay married Tana Hutcheson in 1996. He and her father, Chris Hutcheson, became business partners and friends.

In 2010, Ramsay suspected that loans his father-in-law had taken out were too high and that with the help of a private investigator, he later discovered that Hutcheson had used the funds to help out a secret mistress and their two children and had also hacked into his emails. In December 2011, Ramsay was awarded 250,000 pounds in damages, while the woman sued him in 2012 for breach of privacy.

Ramsay fired Hutcheson, who denied any wrongdoing, telling the UK newspaper The Daily Mail that he had used a company credit card to take out loans but that they were all paid back. The two later reached a financial settlement.

3. He's never undergone mental health treatment.

"No! Never! Never been in therapy, never needed therapy. No!" he told Men's Journal.

When asked if he takes medications, he said: "No! Never! [Expletive], no!"

4. He says he doesn't curse in front of his kids.

Ramsay and his wife have four children. The chef, who is possibly one of the most bleeped-out reality stars on network television, told Men's Journal: "I've never cursed in front of them. Never, ever."

Ramsay is set to work with child chefs on a new "MasterChef" spin-off, "Junior MasterChef." Its premiere date has not been announced.

5. He wooed his wife with food.

Ramsay told Men's Journal that he cooked dinner for his one on one of their first dates.

"I put together the most amazing langoustine salad, and I made this amazing fragrant lemongrass mayonnaise to put over the prawns, these beautiful, thick, number one langoustines, which were poached in bouillon and served over a nice fresh green-bean salad with slightly toasted hazelnuts, and it was [expletive] amazing," he said.

"By the time we got halfway through the appetizer, her clothes were off, we didn't even get to the main course," he said. "What a night."

(Pictured: Chef Gordon Ramsay appears on a season 10 episode of FOX's "Hell's Kitchen." It aired on Aug. 20, 2012.)